life
INTERVIEW
Photos: Left - Michael Thompson (horn), Tim Carey (piano) and Richard Studt (violin)
The Strad,
horn and
hosepipe for
a Ventnor
piano
“The problem with good pianos is
that their owners are reluctant to let
them be moved. If you want to attract
world-famous musicians to perform,
you need the accompanist to have an
instrument which is worthy of their
excellence.” So says Anthony Churchill of
the Ventnor Piano Fund.
The Ventnor Recital for the fund
at St Catherine’s Church, Ventnor,
did indeed draw on the services of
world-class violinist Richard Studt on
his Stradivarius, with Michael Thompson
on his Paxman of London horn and Tim
Carey on the 100-year-old Steinway piano.
The aim of the fund is to bank money
that will eventually buy such a piano,
and make Ventnor the centre of musical
excellence it strives to be.
If Tim yearned for the day when £30,000
has been amassed and an excellent piano
takes pride of place at St Catherine’s, he
is in good company. Liszt – one of the
composers featured on the evening and the
pop star of the day – once played at Ryde
and Newport. He came from Portsmouth
in a gale and had to leave his piano
behind, so he had to play on the Island
on pub pianos. Maybe if there’d been a
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‘Ventnor piano’ he would have returned.
Elgar was the other composer with Isle of
Wight connections: he came here on his
honeymoon.
The repertoire enraptured the sell-out
audience. Mozart’s Horn Trio in Eb K
407 and Horn Concerto (last movement);
Elgar’s Chanson de Matin; Bartok’s
Romanian Dances; Liszt’s Sonnetto 104
‘Del Petrarca’ ; Billy Mayerl’s Railroad
Rhythm ; Kreisler’s Zigeuner Capricio
and Marche Miniature Viennoise ;
Tchaikovsky’s Dance of the Reeds
(Nutcracker); Rachmaninov’s Prelude
in C# minor; and Brahms (Horn Trio).
Trios started and completed each of two
concerts on that day, and duet and solos
alternated in between. Rachmaninov’s
need for power was bravely supported by
the piano.
It was thanks to a happy find in a
junk shop that the audience heard the
fiendishly difficult arrangement for
violin and piano of the Tchaikovsky, by
David Oistrakh. Because all notes were in
Russian Richard did not at first realize
what it was. As well as this piece, the
Mozart and the Zigeuner and Marche
were played by Richard for the first time.
The sublime went briefly to the
ridiculous. A garden hose from B&Q
was employed by Michael to illustrate
the development of the horn, with a
Woolworth fuel funnel
attached. Richard read
poems appropriate to
each piece, and told
anecdotes. Billy Mayerl,
a popular jazz musician
and composer had his own
BBC Radio show. Kreisler,
the most admired violinist
of the early 20th Century,
used as encores “unknown
works by almost unknown
composers,” only later in
life admitting they were his own.
Musically the most formidable challenge
was the finale Brahms Horn Trio,
beginning sombrely, in commemoration
of his mother Christiane’s death earlier in
1865, but ending with a fourth movement
of joy symbolising recovery after
mourning.
The Rev Graham Morris compered a
generous list of prizes for the Raffle,
saying: “It was so good to see Ventnor
pull together.” Gifts came from Ventnor
Brewery, the Rex Bar and Restaurant,
St Augustine Villa, Tinto’s Wine Bar,
Ventnor Rare Books, The Met, The
Spyglass Inn, The Wellington Hotel,
The Ventnor Haven Fishery, Perks of
Ventnor, Cheetah Marine, Hambrough
Hotel, Sophie Honeybourne Jewellery,
The International Jazz Festival, Robin
McInnes with his three prizes, and Island
Concerts.
“The audience only realised how
lucky they were after the day was over,”
said Anthony Churchill. “We just hope
that Richard will bring two more of his
internationally famous friends to play
again next year”.
Richard’s sprightly mother, 92, was
in the front row of the first of two
performances “to make sure he doesn’t
play any wrong notes”.
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